For one, the man is 50. 50! It is a shocking number for a leading
man that looks, and still plays, much younger than his actual age,
but also because he has had such a crazy career. He’s been in such a
long list of great movies, and so many of the roles have been more
unique and more interesting than standard Hollywood leading man stuff.

Many actors have set out on a journey to find interesting roles, and
you’d surely recognize some of them, you might even know their names,
but I’m fairly certain none of them have had the career Johnny has
had. In his first 6 years in the business he went from A Nightmare on
Elm Street, to Platoon, to John Water’s Cry-Baby, to 21 Jump Street,
to Edward Scissorhands. He ended that run as a bonafide star, but had
already done a mix of commercial, and artistic, off-beat projects.
Amazingly, that run was over 20 years ago, which is what makes Depp’s
50th birthday so noteworthy. He has put in a lot of time, done a lot
of great work, but (by all appearances) has done it his way…and that
demands recognition! Happy 50th Johnny!

Gone are the array of make-shift dreads, gobs of charcoal makeup, and swaths of flowing gypsy-like fabric; Also missing is the soon-to-be modernly iconic crow headdress, Native American chestplate, and all other accessories and makeup that the world has come to recognize as signature Johnny Depp. Though in a few of these pics it appears that he could be wearing a minor facial prosthetic and is perhaps sporting some applied scruff.

A slick shutterbug or two captured these images of Depp on the Los Angeles set of his next film, Transcendence – due to shoot in New Mexico within the next few weeks. This Peek at The Lone Ranger star shows dress, cut and shave more similar to some of his very early roles like Officer Tom Hansen or even doomed teen Glen Lantz!

In Trancendence Johnny Depp heads an all star cast including Morgan Freeman, Paul Bettany, Cillian Murphey, Rebecca Hall and Kate Mara. Details of the film’s intriguing plot is being held tightly under wraps, though it has been reported that it will be a psychological, science fiction thriller, which follows a scientist whose brain is the first to be downloaded onto computer creating a sort of mainframe that can think for itself.

Seeing Depp in an intense thinking man’s role over his more animated caricature stints is sure to be met with interest. Maybe a little Mort Rainey meets Donnie Brasco…

EG Casting is looking for East Indian, U.S. Military, tattooed, hipster types, amputees, etc. for a SCI-FI film shooting in New Mexico this spring/summer. If you are interested, send the following to transcendextras@gmail.com:

UPDATE 4/23/1013: Unofficial confirmation continues to roll in! This exceptional looking production IS NEW MEXICO bound!

As we first broke the news here, Johnny Depp is expected back in New Mexico for his upcoming film “Transcendence”. Though no official confirmation of the production making its way to the Land of Enchantment has been announced, lead casting details are abundant!

Cinemablend reports that Christopher Nolan’s BATMAN co-stars Morgan Freeman and Cillian Murphey have joined the cast of the film which is helmed by Wally Pfister, Nolan’s director of photography on the famed Dark Knight trilogy.

Very little information has come out regarding the plot of the film, penned by Jack Paglen, except that its likely something of a sci-fi/fantasy, physiological drama in which “a scientist’s brain gets uploaded into a supercomputer with the aim of creating the world’s first machine that can think for itself”.

Production is expected to begin later this month for release on April 25, 2014.

Keep it here for what we hope will be an official word on at least some of the project getting underway here in NM!

***UPDATE*** We are unable to divulge whether tribal, public or private property, locations or facilities are in talks to host this project, but multiple local area sources have confirmed to us the film’s likelihood of shooting in New Mexico.

In a far out blind item, we were recently hinting at rumblings that the biggest of biggies by way of global superstars, was possibly en route BACK to New Mexico!

Now that reports are rolling into the blogosphere that Johnny Depp’s next feature film is in fact on the rails, rapidly headed toward meeting production dates for a Spring 2014 release date, we ~can tell you – DEPP IS HEADED BACK TO NEW MEXICO!

Transcendence (which I will now learn how to spell) is set to co-star NMFilmer Paul Bettany, who starred in the 2009 New Mexico film Legion. Dark Knight cinematographer Wally Pfister will make his directorial debut with the film, which Collider reports to be about “a scientist whose brain gets uploaded into a supercomputer with the aim of creating the world’s first machine that can think for itself”.

Though their time in New Mexico has come to a raucous wrap, The Lone Ranger filming rolls on in California.

Walt Disney Pictures has released these breathtaking long shots and set stills of stars Armie Hammer and Johnny Depp from the gorgeous location shoots here in NM and in UT.

Teaser-trailer dot com has published these action packed “spy” pics from the Los Angeles set.

Check-out all our coverage on the film here – Chronicling everything that’s come across our desktop, from the first rumblings, to the rocky start-up, local filming haps, right down to those shiny happy NM Wrap Party pics.

BONUS 09/06/12: Scroll way, way down for video of THE LONE RANGER AKA ARMIE HAMMER LIVE on the NM Set of TLR with James Blackburn!!!

EVEN FURTHER DOWN THE SCROLL: Raw Footage of The Lone Ranger filming near Eagles Nest, NM from August 26, 2012. Depp and Hammer in full dress as Tonto and the Lone Ranger in Train scene.

From set to stage (and everywhere in-between) Johnny Depp certainly has left his impression on NM.

Since the beginning of 2012 the inbox@oneheadlightink.com has received everything from the interesting to the outlandish by of way info. and photos swirling around the then secretive “Silver Bullet” project.

From the very first studio lot prop pics we chose to release, which made waves with some local industry insiders, to the sweet pics true fans, friends and admirers of the star shared in confidence we’ve enjoyed being taken along for the ride.

Now that Disney’s The Lone Ranger has wrapped, here are a select few, previously unreleased pics:

Was Johnny Depp at this weekend’s Albuquerque Comic-Expo? Fellow film star and comic legend The Real Stan Lee was!

While Stan Lee made his highly anticipated appearance at the Expo this weekend, rumors swirled on the floor of the convention center when attendees began to whisper that The Lone Ranger star may have made his disguised way through the crowds.

From the top of the comic-book world totem pole, Lee tweeted graciousness toward Depp who is filming TLR in the Q with:

We purposely came to #Albuquerque late, ‘cause I knew #JohnnyDepp was shooting here today, and I didn’t want to have all the attention of everybody taken away from him and centered on me… And I thought that was the least I could do for a fellow movie star.
-The Real Stan Lee

If you found yourself oddly taken with a “mad hatted”, grey bearded chap at Sunday’s Expo, you may have been comic-crazed face to superstar and newly anointed Comanche, disguised face with Johnny Depp! Did you see him there? Some OHI readers think they did.

INTRODUCING Mah Woo May, the Comanche name given to Johnny Depp, which translates to, “Shape Shifter”.

Sure as the casting of Johnny Depp in the upcoming Bruckheimer/Verbinski film adaptation of The Lone Ranger as the Native American character, Tonto drew fire, so might this move by The Comanche Nation.

Regardless of critics, artistic interpretation/representation met history, culture, unity and family when the world famous actor was formally adopted into the Comanche Nation at a private ceremony in Albuquerque, NM last week.

Pictured above with President and Founder of Americans for Indian Opportunity, LaDonna Harris.

No such hullabaloo is or has been raised about the Lone, Texas born, Ranger himself being portrayed by a hunky Californian…

The 48-year-old actor was thrown from the powerful animal while filming forthcoming Western movie ‘The Lone Ranger’ but he believes the strong bond he forged with the creature made it react instinctively to ensure his fall wasn’t as bad as it could have been.

Johnny – who plays the Lone Ranger’s Native American sidekick Tonto – said: “I’m lucky to be here. I’ve done a number of films on horseback and I’ve taken a couple of spills but this was a violent one.

“I had a good relationship with the horse, which was named Scout, and when I look at the tape I can see that Scout saved my life.

“I went down badly and I was dragged for 25 yards and in the end the horse just jumped over me and clipped me with his back legs.”

Despite being a huge star, the ‘Dark Shadows’ actor insists he isn’t a very ambitious person and doesn’t choose his roles by guessing how successful they might be.

When he embarked on his acting career, Johnny – who has children Lily-Rose, 12, and 10-year-old Jack with partner Vanessa Paradis – just wanted to be able to look back on his body of work and be proud of it.

He added in an interview with the Daily Mirror newspaper: “I never knew where I was going to go. I never really thought about where any of it was going.

“I only knew that, regardless of success or failure, I always wanted to some day be able to look back and go, ‘I did alright. I’m proud of what I did. I didn’t sell out.’

“I’ve never felt particularly ambitious or driven, although I like to create stuff, whether it’s a little doodle, a drawing, a small painting or a movie or a piece of music, so I suppose I’m driven by that. Everything I’ve done has felt natural.”

Actor Johnny Depp, who will play Tonto in the upcoming film version of The Lone Ranger, has begun filming in Monument Valley and last week was visited on set by Navajo Nation President Ben Shelly and Vice President Rex Lee Jim.

Gayle Dine’ Chacon, Surgeon General of the Navajo Nation, spoke with Depp at length, particularly about preventing youth suicide on the reservation, and admitted to being “star struck.” “He is a very charming man, very gracious and very concerned as well,” she said, according to a People.com story. “He probably spent a good hour with us. Everybody else left the set, but he was still there. … You feel that you are the only one there – that he’s just focusing on you.